O#181ORDINANCE i~0. 181
AI~ ORDINANCE 0F THE CITY OF BOYNTO~ BEACH~
?AL~ BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA, ESTABLISaqI_N6 A
BUREAU OF FIRE PREV~TION, OUTLINING THE
DUTIES OF SUCH BUR2~AU, PROVIDING PENALTIES
FOR VIOLATIONS, AK~ REPEALING ~LL ORDINANCES
AND ?ARTS OF ORDINANCES INCONSiSTANT HEREWITH.
1. A Bureau of Fire Prevention in the Fir~ DeparSment of
tha Cit~ of Bo~ton Beach, Palm Beach County~ Florida~
is hereby established which shall be operated under the sup-
ervision of the Chief of the Fire Department.
The Chief of th~ Fire Department shall designate an
officer ~or me~oer) of the Fire Department as Chief of the
Bureau of Fire Prevention, who shall hold this office at
~ieasure of vh~ Chief of the Fire Department.
The Chief of th~ Fire Department m~y detail such
other a~mbers of the fire department as inspectors as shall
from time to time be necessary. The Chief of the Fire
partmen~ shall reco~end to the City of Boynton Beach, the
employment of or~ or more technical inspectors, who, when
such authorization is made, shall be selected through an
examination to deter~--in~ hi~ fitness for th~ position. The
~xamination shall be open to members and non-members of the
fire aepartm~nt, a~ appointments made after exam~ation shall
be for an indefinite term_with removal only for cause.
It shall be the duty of the officers of the Lureau
of Fire Prevention to e~orce all laws and ordi=ances covering
the following:
i. ~ne prevention of fires;
The storage and use of explosives and fia~b!es;
The installation and maintenance of automatic and
other private fire alarm systems, and fire extingdish-
lng equipment;
~ Thamaintsnanc~ and re~alation o~ fire escapes;
5. The means a~-~l adequacy of exit in case of fir~, from
factories, schools, hotels, l'od~ing houses, asylums,
hosoitals, cnu_ches, halls, theatres,~ amphLth~tres, and-
all other places in which numbers of persons work, li~e
or co~igrega~e, from time to t~me for any purpose~:
The investigation of the cause~ origin& and circum-
stances of fires. They shall have such other powers
and perDorm such other d~aties as are set forth in
other sections of this ordinance, and as ~ay be con
ferred and imposed from time to time by law.
3. The Chief of the Fire Department, Chief of the
Bureau of Fire Prevention or any Inspector may, at all reas-
onable' hours, enter any build~'lg or premises within his
jurisdiction for the purpose of =~king any inspection, or
investigatign which, under the provisions of this ordinance,
he or they may deem necessary to be made.
4. The Chief ef the Fire Department, Chief of the Bureau
of Fire Prevention or any Inspector specially designated
thereto shall inspect, as often as may be necessary, but not
less than four times a year, all specially hazardous manu-
facturing processes, storage or installations of gases,
chemicals, oil~, explosives and fl~=mable materials, all
interior fire alarm a~ automatic sprinkler systems, a~
such other hazards or appliances as tb~ Chief of the Fire
Department shall designate, and sb~ll naake such orders as
may be necessary for the enforcement of the laws and ordin-
ances governing, the same and for safeguarding of life and
property from fire.
5. It shall be the duty of the Chief of the Fire De-
partment to ~spect, or cause to be inspected by the Bureau
of Fire Prevention, o~ by the Fire Department officers ~d
members, as often as may be necessary, but nov less tha~
twice a year in outlying districts and four times a yea~ in
the closely built portions of the city a~ll buildings a~
premises except the interiors of private dwellings, for the
purpose of ascertaining and causing to be corrected any
conditions iiahle to cause fire, or any violations of the pro-
visions or intent of any ordinance of th~ city affecting the
fire hazard.
Wnenever any Inspector, as defined above, shall find
in any building or upon m~y premises~ co~bustible or explosive
matter or dangerous accmmulation~ of rubbish or unnecessary
accumulations of waste paper, boxes, sb~vings, or any highly
flammable materials, and which is so situated as .to endange~
property; or shall find obstructions to or on fiu~e escapes,
stairs, passageways, door or windows, liable to ~lterfere
with the operations of th~ Fire Department or egress of ~
occupants in case of fire, he shall order same to be removed
or remedied.
6. The Chief of the Fire Department, Chief of the Bureau
of Fire Prevention or an Inspector up6n the complai~!t of m~y
person o~ whenever he or they shall deem it necessary, shall
inspec~ ~hy buildings and premises within their jurisdiction.
W~enever ~ of said officers shall find ~y building or oth~
structure which, for want of repairs, lack of sufficient fire
escapes~ automatic or other fire alarm apparatus or fire ex-
tinguishing equipment or by reason of age or dilapidated con-
ditions, or from any other cause, is especially liable to
fire, and whibh is so situated as to endanger other property
or the occupa$~s thereof, and what, ever such officer shall
find in ~%y building combustible or explosive matter or flam-
mable conditions dangerous to the safety of such building
or the occupants thereof he or ~aey sb~ll order such dangerous
conditions or materials to be removed or remedied.
7. The service of ~ach orders as ~nontioned in Sections
~, 8 and 6 may be made upon the occupant of the premises to
whom it is directed, either by delivering a copy of same to
such occupant personally or by delivering the sa~ to and
leaving with any person in charge of the premises, or in case
ne such person is found upon the premises, by affixing a copy
thereof in a conspicous place o~ the door to the entrance of
said premises. ~enever it may be necessary to serve such an
order upon the owner of premises such order may be served
either by delivering to and lemving with tb~ said pe~son a
copy of th~ said order, or, if such ow~.~er is absent from the
jurisdiction of the officer ~king the order, by mailing such
copy to the owner's last ~o'~ post office address.
~y such order shall forthwith be complied with by
th~ owner or occupant of such premises or building. If such
order is made by the Chie£ of the Bureau of t~he Fire Prevention
or one of th~ Inspectors, such ember or occupant may within
twenty-four hours appeal to the Chief of the Fire Department,
who ~all, within five days, review such order and file his
decision theron, and unless by his authority the order is
revoked or modified it shall remain in full force and be com-
plied with within the time fixed in said order or decision of
the Chief of the ~ire Department.
Provided, however, th'at any s~ch owner or occupant
may, within five days after the ~zking or affirming of any
such order by the Chief of the Fire Dep~rtment, file his
petition with the Municipal Court, p~ay~g a review of such
order and it sbmll be the duty of such court:~to hear the
same within not less than five days nor more than ten days
from the t~ne the petition is filed, and to make such order-
in the premises as right and justice may require and such
decision Shall be final. Such parties so appealing to the
Y~unicipal Court s~b~ll file with said court within two days a
bond in an ~uaount to be fixed by the court~ to be approved
by the cour2, conditioned to pay all the costs of such appeal
in case such appellant fails to sustain his appeal or ~n~ same
be dismissed for any cause~
8. The Bureau of Fire Prevention shall investigate t~
cause, origin ~d circumstances of every fire occurring in
the city by which property has been destroyed or damaged and,
so far as possible shall determine whether the fire is the
result of carelessness or design~ Such investigations shall
be begun immediately upon t~e occurrence of such a fire by
the Xnspecto? in whose district the fire occurs, and ~i~ it ~
appea~s to ~me officer making such sn ~vestigation, that such
fire is of suspicious origin, the Chief of the ~ire Departmemt
shall be innn~diately notified of the facts; he shall take
charge i~mediate~y of the physical evidence, ~hall notify
~he proper authorities desi~ated by law to pursue the in-
vestigation of such ~tters~ and shall further co~operate
with the authorities ~ the collection of evidence and ~
the prosecution of the case. Every fire shall be reported in
writing to the Bureau of Fire P~evention within two days
after the occurrence of the same, by the offioer in whose
jurisdiction such fire has occurred. Such report shall be
in such form as shall be prescribed by the Chief of tl~
Fi~e Department, and shall contain a statement of all facts
relating to the cause, origin and circumstances of such fire,
anm extent of the damage thereof, and the insurance uoon such
property, and such other information as may be required.
9. The City Attorney, upon request of the Bureau of
Fire Prevention,'~nall assisn th~ Inspeators in the invest-
igation of m~y fire which, in their opinion, is of suspicious
origin.
10. It shall be the duty of the Chief of the Fire Depart-
ment to requi~e teachers of public~ private and parochial
schools and educational institutions to b~ve one fire drill
each month and to ~eep all doors mu~ exits unlocked du~ing
school hours.
11. [he Chief of the Fire Department shall keep, in the
office of tl~ Bureau of Fire Prevention, a record of aL1
fires and of the facts concerning same, including statistics
as to the extent of such fires a~ the damage caused thereby,
and -~ether such losses were covered by insurance, and if so,
in what amount° Such record shall be made daily from the
reports made by the Inspectors uz~er th~ provision of this
ordinance. All su&n records shall be public.
12o The annual report of t~b~ Bureau of Fire Prevention
shall be made on ~ before ~ahe day of
a~xl transmitted to the Mayor (o~o~ssioners);
it shall contain all proceedings under this ordinance, with
such statistics as the ~Ohief of th~ Fire Department may
wish to include t~erein; the Chief of the Fire Department
shall also recommend any amen~uents to the ordinance which,
~ his judgm~nt, ~hall b~ d~sirabl~.
All regulations issued by the State Fire Marshal
under authority of Chapter BO,6V1 Laws of~Florida~ approved
June 4, 19~l, az~ en.titled~ "AN ACT Relating to the State
Treasurers to provide for Additional Powers a~i Duties of the
State Treasurer as Ex-Officio Insurance Commissioner in
Com~c~zon with Fires; to Provide for Pa~ent of Exoenses of
Administration~ to Provide for Appointment of an Ad$isory
Co~mitte~..; and to Repeal ALL Laws ~n Conflict Herewith;"
S~all b~ enforceable by the proper authorities of this ~min~
icipa~ity, and the Chief of the Fire Department, or the Mayor,
are hereby authorized to perform within the corporate limits
of this mnnicipality m~y duties that may be imposed upon
them by said law~ or in accordance therewith, and to have
such ~ssistance as they m~y find necessary from other officia!s
of this~t~nicipality, in the discharge of such duties.
~aiy and all persons who shall violate ~y of the pro-
visions of this or~linance or gail to comply therewith, or who
maintained
Tho appticati~on of the above Denalty shall not
held to preVon~ tm ~ ~f~r¢~d removal ~f prOhibited conditions.
t8. ~ All ordinates ~d parts of o~inanc~s inconsist~i
herewith ~r~ h~reby r~P~als~.
~s o~ance shall take effect and be in